The finance ministers of China and Japan exchanged views on deepening cooperation at the Sixth China-Japan Finance Dialogue this weekend.

Xiao Jie, the minister of finance, and Taro Aso, Japan’s deputy prime minister and minister of finance, cochaired the dialogue on May 6, with senior officials from finance ministries and central banks of both countries attending.

The two finance ministers agreed that the dialogue is significant to both sides, as it contributes to a deepening exchange of macroeconomic issues and policy measures and helps strengthen financial cooperation between the two countries.

Both sides recognized the need to promote economic restructuring through enhanced communication on macroeconomic policies and agreed to maintain consultations on major international economic and financial issues.

They also emphasized the need to further deepen forward-looking cooperation in the financial field to support collaboration between the two countries in economics, trade and investments.

Both sides welcomed the successful close of the ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting and the China-Japan-South Korea Trilateral Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting, which were held just before the dialogue.

The two ministers also agreed to hold the seventh such dialogue in China next year.

They also agreed to launch joint research on issues of mutual interest and report the outcomes in the next dialogue.

Exports to China, Japan’s largest trading partner, rose 28.2 percent year-on-year in February, accelerating from a 3.1 percent gain in the previous month.

Demand for auto parts from China and for electronics components from Hong Kong contributed to export growth in February.This performance helped Japan log a surplus of 111.8 billion yen with China – its first in five years.

Analysts said February’s 8.3 percent growth in the volume of exports, and average export volume growth of around 4 percent in January and February, was a positive sign for Japan’s export-reliant economy in the current quarter.

S. Jack Heffernan Ph.D. Funds Manager at HEFFX holds a Ph.D. in Economics and brings with him over 25 years of trading experience in Asia and hands on experience in Venture Capital, he has been involved in several start ups that have seen market capitalization over $500m and 1 that reach a peak market cap of $15b. He has managed and overseen start ups in Mining, Shipping, Technology and Financial Services.